Ex-Ekiti governor Oni challenges ouster in Appeal court

ADO-EKITI-After about five months out of office, ousted governor of Ekiti State, Egnr. Segun Oni, has appealed against his outer by a Governorship Election Appeal Tribunal sitting in a Ilorin Kwara state, on October 15, 2010.

The Appeal Court, Ilorin Division, led by Justice Isa Ayo Salami, had on October 15 last year invalidated the election of Oni and ordered that the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, candidate during the 2009 gubernatorial election re-run, Dr Kayode Fayemi be sworn- in as the new governor of the state.

Oni who wore a white lace (buba and sokoto) with black cap to match, drove into the Appeal Court located within the premises of Ado Ekiti High Court in a convoy of cars at about 12.30pm yesterday amidst anti-government songs by his admirers, deposed a 48- paragraph affidavit to support his Appeal.

Some of the claims in the motion filed by the former governor and his party, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, included that the A CN in its petition before the tribunal made contradictory positions claiming that there was no election yet also affirming that the election was manipulated.

However, the ACN, in its reaction, expressed doubt whether the PDP in the state knew the fact that the matter of governorship election petition terminated in the appeal court

According to the chairman of ACN in the state, Chief Jide Awe, Oni and his party had right to call for the review of what he described as ‘popular and sound judgement’, but noted that the judiciary would decide whether the motion brought before it was statu-barred or not.

Those in the convoy of the former governor were PDP Chairman in the State, Chief Bola Olu-Ojo, former Chief of Staff, Mr Segun Ilori, former Chairman, Local Government Service Commission, Chief Femi Akinyemi, PDP Deputy Chairman in the State, Mr David Oke and others

The former governor who spoke with the newsmen after the signing of the affidavit , said he had come to establish the truth that he was unjustly removed from office by the Appeal Court.